Overview

When you need to access a specific Hacker News story, comment, or user profile, searching by ID is the most direct and efficient method. Every item on Hacker News—whether it's a story, comment, poll, or job posting—has a unique numeric identifier. This guide will help you understand how to leverage these IDs to retrieve exactly what you're looking for through the Hacker News MCP Server.

Understanding Hacker News IDs

Hacker News assigns a unique ID to every item posted on the platform. These IDs are sequential numbers that you'll typically find in the URL when browsing the site. For example, in the URL https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12345678, the number 12345678 is the item ID.

IDs are permanent and never change, making them reliable references for specific content. Whether you discovered an interesting discussion weeks ago or someone shared a specific comment thread with you, the ID provides a consistent way to retrieve that exact content.

Searching by Story ID

To retrieve a specific story, simply provide its ID to your AI assistant through natural language. You might say something like "Get me Hacker News story 12345678" or "Show me the details for item ID 12345678."

The server will return comprehensive information about that story, including its title, URL, author, submission time, current score, and number of comments. This is particularly useful when you want to revisit a story you've bookmarked or check how a discussion has evolved since you last viewed it.

Accessing Comments by ID

Comments also have unique IDs that work the same way as story IDs. When you request a comment by its ID, you'll receive the comment text, author information, timestamp, and details about its position in the conversation thread.

This functionality is valuable when someone references a specific insightful comment or when you want to track a particular discussion thread within a larger conversation.

Finding User Profiles

User profiles can be accessed by username rather than numeric ID. Simply request information about a specific username to retrieve their karma score, submission history, comment activity, and any biographical information they've provided.

Practical Tips

When you encounter interesting content on Hacker News, note the item ID for future reference. These IDs enable precise retrieval without having to search through lists or remember exact titles. This is especially helpful for research projects, content curation, or when monitoring ongoing discussions about specific topics.